Making dumplings

16 Jan 2012 Comments Off

Chinese New Year is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays.

It marks the end of the winter season. Chinese New Year’s eve (this year, the Chinese New Year’s eve falls Saturday, January 22 and the new year starts on Sunday, January 23), a day where Chinese families gather for their annual reunion dinner is marked by the supper, a feast with families, including such items as pigs, ducks, chicken and sweet delicacies. In northern China, where I live, it is customary to make dumplings (jiaozi) after dinner to eat around midnight. Dumplings symbolize wealth because of their shape resembles a Chinese tael.

So armed with our two hands and a smile, yesterday night, we decided to participate in such a family making tradition…

We ended up in making a ton; I mean a ton of dumplings, what an experience it was. Here is a recipe of dumplings I have made earlier this year. Basically, the making of dumpling is all in skill of the cook, the way to make the dough, to hold it while filling and to get the skill of an artist to close it properly. I ate over 20 dumplings… all by myself…!